Q: What is best practice now?
A: What is considered ‘best practice’ in newstrade distribution has changed significantly over the past decade and will continue to evolve as traditional retail platforms and channels redefine their space, and with it, shopper priorities.
With 41% of consumers buying just one magazine annually within any one store, publishers need to continue to approach the newsstand as their shop front, utilising the opportunity to position their products front and centre to potential readers. This means having their product in the right place, served to the right customer, at the right time, covering the right content. It is a distributor’s role to help publishers achieve this.
Long gone are the days of the ‘scattergun’ approach, where significant volume was pushed into market in the hopes of reaching new customers for one-off purchases. With rising inflation and the ever-increasing costs of production and transportation, there remains a need to consider print runs.
Today’s distribution landscape is hugely analytical, using near real-time data to ensure copy placement into retailers is done at a store level against genuine in-store demand. This methodology reduces both cost and risk, increasing efficiencies and driving profitability. Sales based replenishment ensures volatility is addressed particularly for seasonal or special issues, ensuring availability remains high and sell outs are negated – but the real science is in making sure initial allocations to stores meet demand.
Our industry is driven by data, and publishers need to ensure they are utilising it to achieve the best results. If title efficiency is low, then a combination of reducing the print run and copy redistribution to catch potential new sales is the answer. Just focusing on reducing supply alone is a self-fulfilling prophecy.
It’s a given that some channels will always be inefficient, but tightening breadth of distribution can help, if advertising is not the primary objective. Visibility over where stock is supplied and why, is crucial for delivering stronger profitability. Publishers have options here, and working with their distributor to conduct a full title review at a store level basis can help remove copies from agents that aren’t performing or may not be the right demographic fit.
Not all retailers attract the same type of consumer base, so focusing attention on developing and growing the retailers that attract the ‘right’ customers for the ‘right’ product is key. We know from newsstand sales data, for example, that WHS Travel is a hot spot for the News & Current Affairs sector, driven in part by business travel. Knowing where titles perform, who the customer is, and why – is vital to ensuring the viability of a product on shelf.
Q: How do you see it changing in the future?
A: The newsstand is an expensive and time-consuming category to manage for most retailers, but we know that magazines drive impulse purchases that help to drive up the overall value of shopper baskets. With the growth of premium products such as bookazines / one shots that cater for a consumer’s passion, the value of the category will continue to increase, making it more attractive to retailers. These products are also expected to help shift consumer mindsets from magazine titles being disposable, to collectable. Increasing their perceived value in shoppers’ minds will allow for the introduction of higher price points and drive stronger revenue.
With space in stores continuing to change however, far more targeted approaches to copy placement will become the norm. As some retailers exit the category, new ones are expected to come in.
Leaning into trends helps keep content fresh, and as one of the most innovative FMCG sectors, publishers needn’t feel afraid of ‘stepping out of their lane’ and trying something new.
As retailers adopt a ‘breadth of range’ mentality, more specialised / niche titles are expected to enter the mainstream. This opens the category to a wider shopper profile, delivering stronger results and bringing new customers to the shelves.
Cross-publisher and group promotions that highlight key events help to capitalise on existing consumer interest driven by external media. Publishers are already moving towards more collaborative approaches to the newsstand, with a goal of ‘category’ rather than ‘title’ level performance in mind. This ‘industry’ mindset is key to ensuring the long-term success of the newsstand into the future.
Q: What are your three top tips?
1. In a time of high inflation and rising costs, ensuring you are managing your print run effectively is key to better managing your bottom line. Are you printing more than you need to? What opportunities would reallocation of your copies from lower performing retailers provide?
2. You don’t need your title listed everywhere: You need to ensure it is available where YOUR customers shop. Focusing and defining your distribution plan with data at its core, will allow you to grow your revenues.
3. Monetise your content: A successful one shot doesn’t have to be the end of the content journey; can further products be produced reaching different audiences and on different platforms to make the effort of the content creation go even further?
About Marketforce
Marketforce is the UK’s leading newsstand distribution partner, delivering expert solutions across local, international, and online markets. With a diverse client base ranging from innovative start-ups to industry-leading publishers, we bring deep insight and proven expertise across the full spectrum of magazines, collectables and partworks. Our breadth of experience, combined with a data-driven approach and strong retailer relationships, ensures we deliver tailored strategies that maximise visibility, grow sales, and unlock new opportunities for our clients.
Email: hello@marketforce.co.uk
This article was first published in Issue # 1 of Best Practice in Publishing, a new publication from InPublishing. Click here for links to the other ‘best practice’ articles from the publication.
